Actuating means for milking-machine pulsators



AW 24;, mgl Y 1,452,00

Y C. H. HAFGOOD ACTUATING MEANS FOR MILKING MACHINE PULSATORS Filed Jan. 1'7, 1922 I To all 'whom 'it may concern f Patented Apr. 24, 1923.

UNITED STAT cYnUsHowAnn Hueoon. or Numana-naw mnSErAssmNon 'ro aan DE Lavar. 'i

snrana'roa COMPANY, or new groan, N. La coaronaTIoNorNnw JERSEY.

ACTUATING MEANS Foa inLKING-Macmnr. rrr;.ssaioma Application filed '.Tanuary'17a'1922. @Serial IVe-529,845'. l

Be it'known .that I, CYRUs HOwARD V.Ir-ladrcooD. a citizen of the United States, residing at Nutley, county. of Essex, and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful g Improvement in Actuating Means for Milking-Machine Pulsators, of which the followis a full, clear, and exact description,

1n reerence being had to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

v My invention relates to that class of of double chamber yteat cups. Such Apulsations are produced by pulsation valves,l which have been -located close to the t'eatl plpe line b having cocks c to which are` cupsfon the milk pail, and elsewhere. Such pulsators have beenfoperated pneumatically', electrically and mechanically.

VThe objection to the operation of such pulsators by electrical means `is that considerable electrical energy must be provided to shift the valve from one extreme position to i another. Hence, it is ordinarily preferred to actuate the valve pneumatically Aand to control its operation by a second valve, which.

may be an independently operable master pulsator located at a distance, or which may be a valve positioned adjacent the pulsator and operated by the pulsator valve or by an electro-magnet. There'are object-ions to each of these systems, either withregard to expense of installation or irregularity and uncertainty of operation.

In 'the `present inventlonl Iy Operate the pulsator valve pneumatically, butwithout the provision of any control valve, and utilizel electrical energy, not to control the admission and exhaust of air to and from the valve but to restrain theV pneumatic forces, which e y always tend to shift the Valve from onek po-k 'sition-to another, from operating 'to shift .they

valve except at predetermined intervals. I accomplish this by the expenditure Ofcomparatively'little electric energy and a maxif mum simplicity of mechanism.k My inve'n-' -t1on,"more specihcally'expressed, comprises means whereby pneumatic forces tend, as

soon as the pulsator valve `is shifted 'to 'one extreme position, to return the valve kto Vtheopposite position, combined with electromagnets, 'each of which operates,.when energized, merely to holdthe valve in one extreme position,and when de-energized, to

"COWY milking machinesL in which pneumatic pulsations'are imparted to Vthe pulsation chambers.,

of portsl and 16, the pair 15Y bei Vrelease the valvev andallow the pneumatic 'ces to operate. .It is found that Ybut little electricV energy is required to hold the. valve from being shifted, in'comparison with the electric energy that would be required to .pull a balanced valvefrom one end tothe `other of the Vvalve cylinder.l

. `A preferred `embodiment of the invention ishshgwn 1n the accompanying drawings, in w 1c fplete installation. Y

. F ig. 2is a longitudinal the newpulsator. f e Figy is across-section on the offset line 3-3 offFig. 2.'

A ypump @exhausts air from a vacuum adapted to be attached flexible pipes d leadlng from the milk pail e. Preferably the pipe d connects with a check valve chamber z on the pail, as specifically illustrated in the `Leitch Patent, No.'1,394,433, October 18,

'the commutator andare' connectedvrespecf tively to" two line wires @and 'p extending Vadjacent'and parallel tol the vacuum pipek vline'bp@` `The claw pulsator valve r, mounted on. the milk chamber .gof the claw, -is Aprovided with a vacuum port 12located`intermediate itsends, two atmosphere ports 13 and 14 sectional view of Y Y e ,e c5 Fig. 1 is a dlagrammatic view of acomf located near yits opposite ends, and two pairs l n located between ports 12 and '13 Aand the pairlbeing located between ports 12 vand 14. Y'

The port 12 is eonnected,fby means of a `flexible tube g, with thel chamber e of the pail e, which is connected with the'source of Yvacuum through pipes d and b; Ports,

15` and 16 are connectemiby means of pairs of tubes a and t, with the teat cupsg'one pair 4of tubes s beingjconnected vwith the outer, or

pulsation, chambers,ofone pair of teat cups,

and the other pair of tubes t--being con-V nected with the corresponding chambers of the other pair of teat cups. I provide this arrangement of ports and tubes to adapt my invention to the alternate system of pulsation; that is, that system wherein Vtwo of the ulsation chambers are subjected to relative y the time that the other two pulsatlon chambers are subjected to relatively low pressure (e. g., partial vacuum); In case it be desired to impart like pulsations simultaneously to allxffour 'teat`v cups, the describedv arrangement is capable of obvious simplification.-

In the valve cylinder heads are twoelectro-magnets 17 and 18, each with one ter- .minalgrounded on the valve body and the other connected with one of they branch wires u and lconnected respectively with the line wires o and fr.y A wire rw connects the valvebody'with the vacuum pipe line b.

Inside the valve cylinder is a piston valve 19 having two circumferential grooves 20 and 21. Holes 22 and 23 in the `piston connect the respective grooves with. the 'respectively adjacent ends ofthe cylinder.v

3o gized for a short 'From the foregoin the maonets 17 and 18 will he energized alternatelymt that each ma et will be ener. rio before the other istie-energized. T at is, magnet 17 will `be energized, then magnet 18 de-energized, thenV magnet 18 energized, then magare not suiliciently strong to y `ce net 17 kde-energized, then magnety 17 energized and'soon. yThese magnets, however, shift the valve. vYVith kthe vvalve in the position shown in Fig. 2 v"atn'iospheric pressure is communicated, by the port '14, groove 21 and hole 23,

to the right lhandend of the valve cylinder, while airis exhausted,b the port 12, groove `20 and hole22, from t e left hand end ofv the-,valve cylinder, thereby tending to move the lpiston to the left. However, at this time thenmagnet 18 is being energized .and

lthe magnet is suiliciently strong to hold the piston-to the right, even after magnet 17 is lenergized. As soon, however, as magnet 18 is deenergized,tle

thepiston to the le t. Atmospheric pres- *sure is then communicated" to the left hand neumatic forces move endofthe cylinder through port 13, groove 120 and hole 22, winnie@l right hand end of the cylinder is subjected to suction through hole 23, groove 21 and port 12. The pneumatic forces, therefore, tendto immediately return the piston to the right, but magnet 17 'whi'ch, before the shift from right to left, had been energized, is suilicientl strong to -hold the piston to the left. soon,

however, as magnet 17 is de-energized, the

piston shifts to the right. l

It will be readil understood that, when the valve is in its eft hand position, air is high pressure (e. g., atmosphere) atA "admitted, through port 13, groove `20 and port 15 to the pulsation chambers of one pair of teat cups, while air is exhausted, through port-16, groove 21 and port 12,` from the pulsation chambers of the other pair of teat cups; while Awhen the valve has been shifted tothe right the connections from the two pairs of puisation chambers to atmosphere and vacuum are reversed.

As hereinbefore stated, because the magnets are'fnotreliedupon to move the valve piston, but only to hold it at a point where there need be no air gap in the magnetic circuit, very small magnets can resist pneumatic forces much greater than that, required to move the piston, and much smaller magnets may be used than if electro-mag.l

t t e v valve will be quick and that the valve may l descri tion of the electric devices, it wil be un erstood that be held in its shifted position for an exact predetermined period of time, so that at all times the action of the pulsator will be re lar and certain.

xcept where specifically claimed, the invention is not limited in its application to double-chamber teat cups, nor to the alternate system of milking. It is clear, also, that the pulsator valve need not be a claw pulsator, but might be located, for example, `on the milk pail, which would necessitate no change in connections. Nor is the invention limited to any described where they are specifically included in the claims. It will also be understood that while, by4 high pressure and low pressure, I mean to cover atmospheric pressure and a partial vacuum, I mean also to include any two different degrees of absolute pressure.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire to lprotect by Let'- ters Patent is:

1. In a milking machine, the combination with the teat cups, of a pulsator valve adapted in its reciprocations to produce pulsations in the teat cups, means whereby pneumatic forces tend to shift the valve, and electro-magnetic means adapted to resist such forces until a predetermined instant.

2. In a milking machine, the combination with the teat cups, of a pulsator valve adapted in its reciprocations to produce puldetails except sations in the teat cups, means whereby the valve is shifted toward it and to de-energize such magnet after the valve is shifted toward it to allow the pneumatic forces to shift the valve back. y

3. In a milking machine, the combination with the teat cups, of a pulsator valve adapted in its reciprocations to produce pulsations `in the teat cups, means whereby pneumatic forces tend, when the valve is in either position, to shift it toward the other position, electro-magnets adapted when energized to hold the valve' in its opposite positions against the pneumatic forces tending to shift it, and means to alternately energize and de-energize each magnet and to energize each magnet before the other is deenergized.

4;. In a milking machine, the combination with thevteat cups, of a pulsator valve either position, to shift it toward the other position, electro-magnets adapted whenl energized to hold the valve in its opposite positions against the pneumatic forces tending 15o-shift it,.and means to alternately energize andAde-energize each magnet and to energize each magnet before the valve completes its shift consequent upon its release due to the de-energizing of the other magnet.

In testimony of which invention, I have hereunto set my hand, at New York, on this 13th day of January, 1922.

YRUS HOWARD HAPGOOD.

Witnesses:

GEO. I. TALLMAN, S. E. BARNES. 

